You are here

News

SURF Provides Undergrad Research Opportunity for Cullen College Junior

By:

Melanie Ziems

Plenty of college students around the country are using the summer months to catch up on their favorite TV shows, work on their base tans and reconnect with old friends. For one Cullen College junior, however, these three months off from school are the perfect opportunity to sharpen her analytical skills and dive head-first into the world of undergraduate research.

The SURF program provides funding for UH undergraduate students to pursue a full-time, 10-week research experience during the summer holiday under the direction of UH faculty members. Course credit isn’t offered for the fellowship, but student researchers earn invaluable experience with hands-on research and analysis in real-world laboratory settings. For Zinecker, the opportunity was too good to pass up.

“I’ve wanted to do undergraduate research basically since I started at UH,” she said. “I was looking at some of my professors’ research and what they were doing. [Dr. Ardebili] was actually my Statics professor the semester before last, so I looked up her research online and it looked really interesting, like the flexible batteries, and I thought it would be really cool so I e-mailed her and asked if she was looking for any undergrad research assistants. So I came into her office to talk about it, and here I am.”

Zinecker will be working specifically on the performance aspect of the batteries, or how much energy the batteries can output. “It’s very exciting as an undergraduate to be able to get this opportunity. I know a lot of people aren’t that lucky,” she said.

While she said she’d be happy doing any research as an undergraduate, the idea of working on batteries for spacesuits greatly appeals to Zinecker. “I’ve always stayed up late to watch launches on TV and whatnot, I’ve always liked space,” she said. Eventually, Zinecker said, “I do hope to get into the space industry somehow, either at NASA or some other commercial company. I would really just like to design something that goes up into space.”

As she takes her first undergraduate research steps this week, Zinecker says her strategy for these opportunities is simple. “Don’t be afraid to aim really high… I just work until it’s done. I don’t stop.”

Faculty:

Department:

Related News Stories

The UH chapter ofTau Beta Pi – Texas Epsilon (TBP) is hosting an information session with representatives of INEOS, Europe’s largest petrochemical company, on Wednesday, February 27, in the Science and Research Building 1 on campus. The presenters will be Bob Sokol, chief financial officer of INEOS Oligomers and Oxide, and Fred Rulander, chief operating officer of INEOS Oxide North America.

On Thursday, February 7th, nearly 1,400 UH engineering students flocked to the UH Hilton to interview and meet with representatives from 110 of Houston’s leading companies at the spring 2019 Engineering Career Fair.